It was produced in a fun and interactive session, where the Reviewers looked at how politics affects their lives and debated how people who work in social care can enable people to take part in the election. The Reviewers drew upon their in-depth training, which has covered citizenship, rights, and person-centred support, as well as their experience of working with people who have a range of needs.

The guide has been shared with all of Community Integrated Care’s services across the UK, which support almost 5000 people. It has also been made available to other social care professionals for free at: www.c-i-c.co.uk/promotingourvoting. It was launched on Friday 24th April and has already received hundreds of downloads and overwhelming feedback from readers.

The publication is part of an internal campaign within the charity, aimed at empowering the people it supports to understand the upcoming election and make an informed choice about whether they wish to participate in it.

People who access care and support are amongst the most under-represented electoral groups within society. Over 60% of people with learning disabilities across England and Scotland were not registered to take part in the 2010 general election.

Sushma Majithia, who co-developed the guide, says, “In our workshop, we learned how much politics affects our lives, both as individuals and people who access support. We think that voting is an important right and that lots of people who haven’t been supported to vote previously can and should be enabled to have their say. We hope our guide encourages and assists many more people to take part in the General Election.”

Gary Dixon, Strategic Quality Lead for Community Integrated Care, says, “Our Peer Reviewers are passionate about people who access support leading full lives and being respected as the individuals they are. Voting is a fundamental right and part of being a citizen, so they rightly want to champion this important cause. We’re so proud of the guide they produced and know that it will enable many more people to exercise their democratic rights.”